Mr. Speaker, this morning, the Bloc Quebecois members were the first to learn, directly from their leader, that he had decided to run for office as successor to Jacques Parizeau as leader of the Parti Quebecois. In our hearts, sadness was followed by pride and confidence that this extraordinary man will help the Quebec people achieve their legitimate ambitions with respect to their destiny.
We are all aware of the great qualities of this man and we know he will muster the creativity and the energies of all the people, in order to meet the many challenges that we, Quebecers, will have to face.
We are proud of the work we did with him. His decision sets a milestone in our common struggle for Quebec because our leader and the Bloc Quebecois are engaged in the same struggle, the struggle of the Quebec people.